Bags, set-up boxes, cases, and in some instances tubular sleeves have been used for convenient storage, handling and shipping of sheet film, such as radiographic elements; photographic paper, photographic plates, etc. To prevent such sheet products from shifting in their containers during handling and for purposes of preventing damage during storage and shipping specially designed containers with inserts and padding have been developed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 423,059 discloses packaging for multiple photographic plates in rectangular paperboard containers fitted with interior vertical partitions between container sidewalls and the plates. U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,821 discloses protective packaging corners for retaining photographic prints positioned on flat support backings.
One principal shortcoming of earlier methods and materials used in packaging photographic and graphic art sheets has been the very extensive range of container sizes and inserts required as a result of an almost infinite number of commercially available sheet sizes. Consequently, manufacturers of film sheets, photographic papers and graphic art supplies have been required to maintain large and costly inventories of special packaging materials. The alternative meant acquiring expensive on-demand manufacturing equipment for cutting stuffer pads or forming special parts. In addition, because most of such materials were designed to be discarded by customers after the packaged products were used they created environmental problems, and added to customer costs for disposal.
More recently, U.S. Pat. No. 5,016,752 (Haugen, Jr.) disclosed a plastic storage container with an interior which could be adjusted for packaging photographic prints and negatives of different sizes. The container is equipped with L-shaped corner guides molded as part of the container base which guides are indented inwardly from the side walls to receive photographic prints, such as 31/2.times.5 inches. The dimensions of the container interior can be altered for larger photographs by bending the corner guides to break them off permanently at the base. While the methods of Haugen, Jr. reduced somewhat the number of different size containers needed in packaging photographic prints and negatives the concept of breaking off corner guides for altering the dimensions of the interior mitigated against recycling this type of packaging by returning to film processors for reuse.
A further example of plastic containers having adjustable interiors is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,662 (Mirlieb et al). The containers consist of supply magazines for X-ray film used with a device for automatically loading the film sheets into a cassette. The supply magazine consists of a generic size container which can be adapted to receive radiographic elements in several formats, i.e. predefined sizes and shapes, such as 18.times.24 cm., 35.times.35 cm., 18.times.43 cm., 20.times.40 cm., etc. Dimensions of the interior may be modified to fit any of these particular film sizes by means of plug-in bars inserted into recesses or holes located in the base and cover sections of the magazine which are predesigned specifically for these film sizes.
While the adjustable containers of Mirlieb et al may be capable of reducing the inventory of multiple magazine sizes for packaging X-ray film their system is not entirely satisfactory. According to the disclosure each sheet format, i.e. film size and shape, is associated with a plurality of oppositely positioned recesses in the bottom and cover sections of the container, into which size projections on plug-in bars can be placed. When the projections are placed into the specific recesses 1c associated with a particular film size or format being packaged the bars define the space required for the sheet. Accordingly, the adjustability of the magazine interiors of Mirlieb et al is quite limited as a result of the required precise prepositioning of recesses for plug-in elements for packaging specific film sizes, and therefore, is lacking in universality. That is, this earlier packaging concept is unable to accommodate virtually any product size placed into the magazine, and particularly, is unable to be used for packaging special product sizes.
The X-ray film magazines of Mirlieb et al may be refillable, but the cover and bottom portions are fastened together. The lack of draft in the magazine side walls also restricts efficient, compact storage and convenient handling and shipping of such containers by customers and film manufacturers for recycling/reuse.
Accordingly, there is a need for more standardized, economic containers and interior packaging elements for graphical sheet products for more substantial reductions in packaging material inventories, including less labor intensive packaging means for special product sizes. As a primary feature, there is need for packaging which is recyclable, possessing structural features which will make it more convenient for customer handling and encourage their returning empty containers to suppliers for refilling. Such environmentally friendly designs should be suitable for building into low cost, reusable plastic, one size containers for packaging standard size graphical sheet products. Similarly, for the almost infinite number of less common and special sizes there is a need for more economic and reusable containers possessing structural features for almost infinite adjustability for packaging X-ray film sheets, photographic prints, negatives, and all other types of photographic elements, papers, plates and graphic art sheets.